Farage: Portraying Ukip as racist a 'disastrous mistake'

Nigel Farage claimed attempts to portray Ukip as racist will prove a "disastrous mistake" for the established political parties, as Farage's party began action to expel two members found to have links to far-right groups.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage said David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Cleeg "are trying to browbeat the British public into abandoning Ukip". Credit: PA

A spokesperson said: "UKIP is a non-racist, non-sectarian party and we are determined to uphold those values. Part of that process is maintaining vigilance against the possibility of infiltration either on an organised or individual basis by those who do not subscribe to our values."

Ukip leader Nigel Farage addressed recent controversies surrounding the party during a visit to Slough today, calling David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg "creeps" for portraying the party as racist.

"They are trying to browbeat the British public into abandoning Ukip and sticking with open-door immigration by using the most disgraceful slurs, " he said.

"The electorate is not in the mood to be intimidated by the political establishment and Messrs Cameron, Miliband and Clegg have just made another disastrous mistake. I call on all fair-minded British people to swing behind Ukip and teach these creeps a lesson they won't forget in a hurry," he added.

The eurosceptic party leader hit back after Barbara Roche - who co-chairs the Migration Matters Trust - the head of a cross-party group accused him of aping far-right tactics and attracting extremists to his cause ahead of the May 22 European elections.

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Ukip MEP Roger Helmer has denied a report in today's Sun (£) that claims he told the newspaper, “It’s fine to despise gay people” and that “being gay is a mental health issue”.

UKIP member Roger Helmer Credit: rogerhelmermep.co.uk

According to the paper, Mr Helmer said that gay children were choosing the “wrong gender.”

“Different people may have different tastes,” he is quoted as saying. “You may tell me that you don’t like Earl Grey tea. That may be a minority view but you are entitled not to like it if you don’t like it.”

The East Midlands MEP described the report as "false and defamatory" in a blog post on his website, in which he says "I simply made the point that people were entitled to their personal preferences."

He said that he has previously stated that "prejudice, hostility and violence against homosexuals are wrong, and totally unacceptable."

A camping gear advert with the slogan "No poles required!" appeared next to a UKIP election campaign billboard.

Billboards in the Granton area of Edinburgh Credit: SWNS Group

The advertisement for inflatable tent technology was photographed next to the party's campaign poster for the upcoming European election.

A spokesman for Clear Channel, the company responsible for the posters, said they were put up at the same time."We can understand why people would make the connection, but at the same time one is for an election campaign on European bureaucracy and the other is an advert for camping supplies."